Charging cable and charging control device

ABSTRACT

A charging cable includes a first interface, configured to connect to a power adapter electronically; and/or a second interface, configured to connect to an electronic equipment electronically; at least one of the first interface and the second interface comprising: a contact sheet; and a first temperature measuring component, configured to measure temperature of the contact sheet, and arranged on the same thermal conductive substrate as the contact sheet. The charging cable further includes a controller, configured to determine temperature of a charging interface and control charging for the electronic equipment according to the temperature of the charging interface, wherein the charging interface comprises at least one of the following interfaces: an interface of the power adapter used for electrical connection with the charging cable, the first interface, the second interface, and an interface of the electronic equipment used for electrical connection with the charging cable.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a divisional application of U.S. application Ser.No. 15/371,390, filed on Dec. 7, 2016, which is a continuation ofInternational Application No. PCT/CN2015/075310, filed on Mar. 27, 2015,the disclosures of both of which are herein incorporated by reference intheir entireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to charging technology, and particularlyto a charging control cable and a charging control device.

BACKGROUND

Electronic equipment such as mobile phones are usually equipped with arechargeable battery that can be charged through a power adapter.

Upon charging, the power adapter converts alternating current (AC) todirect current (DC) with specified voltage and supplies DC to electronicequipment. In the power adapter and the electronic equipment, anelectronic interface is typically provided respectively. Electricalconnection with a charging cable can be achieved through the electronicinterface, whereby the electronic equipment can be charged through thecharging cable.

Electrical connection between electronic interfaces is achieved viacontact of a metal contact sheet. Because of thermal effects ofresistance, heat is generated at the metal contact sheet when chargingcurrent flows through. Large charging current or high charging voltagemay cause high temperature of the electronic interface; in such acondition, device damage or even an explosion may occur, which canaffect the security of charging.

SUMMARY

Disclosed herein are implementations of a charging cable. The chargingcable includes at least one of a first interface and a second interface.The first interface is configured to connect to a power adapterelectronically. The second interface is configured to connect to anelectronic equipment electronically. At least one of the first interfaceand the second interface includes a contact sheet and a firsttemperature measuring component. The first temperature measuringcomponent is configured to measure temperature of the contact sheet andis arranged on the same thermal conductive substrate as the contactsheet. The charging cable further includes a controller, configured todetermine temperature of a charging interface and control charging forthe electronic equipment according to the temperature of the charginginterface, where the charging interface includes at least one of thefollowing interfaces: an interface of the power adapter used forelectrical connection with the charging cable, the first interface, thesecond interface, and an interface of the electronic equipment used forelectrical connection with the charging cable.

Disclosed herein is a device for charging control of the foregoingcharging cable. The device includes a processor, and a memory, storingcomputer readable programs which, when executed by the processor, areoperable with the processor to: determine, with the controller,temperature of the charging interface and control charging for theelectronic equipment according to the temperature of the charginginterface.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to illustrate the technical solutions of the present disclosureor the related art more clearly, a brief description of the accompanyingdrawings used herein is given below. Obviously, the drawings listedbelow are only examples, and a person skilled in the art should be notedthat, other drawings can also be obtained on the basis of theseexemplary drawings without creative work.

FIG. 1 is a schematic flow chart illustrating a charging control methodaccording to an implementation of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configurationrelationship between temperature measuring components and an electronicinterface.

FIG. 3A is a schematic structure diagram illustrating a charging controldevice according to an implementation of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 3B-3C are detailed schematic structure diagrams illustrating thecharging control device according to implementations of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 4A is a schematic structure diagram illustrating a charging cableaccording to an implementation of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 4B-4C are detailed schematic structure diagrams illustrating acharging cable according to implementations of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Technical solutions of the implementations of the present disclosurewill be described clearly and completely taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings; it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill inthe art that, the implementations described below are merely a part ofthe disclosure and other implementations obtained out of them withoutcreative work will fall into the protection range of the presentdisclosure either.

Embodiment 1

According to implementation 1 of the present disclosure, it is provideda charging control method. FIG. 1 is a schematic flow chart illustratingthe method. The method can be performed in a charging cable throughwhich a power adapter can perform charging for an electronic equipment;that is to say, the method can be performed by the charging cable. Asshown in FIG. 1, the method begins at block 110.

Specifically, at block 110, temperature of a charging interface isdetermined; at block 120, charging of the electronic equipment can becontrolled according to the temperature of the charging interface.

The method can be applied to a charging system in which charging isachieved through electrical connection via a charging interface.

The charging interface, which can include but is not limited to at leastone of the following interfaces, will be described in detail.

Interface A: an interface of the charging cable used for electricalconnection with the power adapter.

Interface B: an interface of the power adapter used for electricalconnection with the charging cable (to be specific, Interface A).

Interface C: an interface of the charging cable used for electricalconnection with the electronic equipment.

Interface D: an interface of the electronic equipment used forelectrical connection with the charging cable (to be specific, InterfaceC).

As one example, in the charging system, the power adapter, the chargingcable, and the electronic equipment (such as mobile phone) can beindependent of one another. In this circumstance, the charging interfacecan include four types of interfaces, that is, Interface A, Interface B,Interface C, and Interface D.

As another example, in the charging system, the charging cable and theelectronic equipment can be set integrally. In this circumstance, thecharging interface can include Interface A and Interface B.

As still another example, in the charging system, the power adapter andthe charging cable can be set integrally. In this circumstance, thecharging interface can include Interface C and Interface D.

Consequently, in the charging control method according to the presentdisclosure, at block 110, the charging cable can determine temperatureof at least one interface of Interface A˜Interface D. Operations fordetermining the temperature of each interface will be described indetail below.

Operations for Determining Temperature of Interface A

The charging interface includes Interface A, that is, an interface ofthe charging cable used for electrical connection with the poweradapter.

In Interface A, there is at least one temperature measuring component(marked as temperature measuring component A or first temperaturemeasuring component) configured to measure the temperature of InterfaceA. Based on this, the process of determining the temperature of thecharging interface at block 110 can be detailed as follows: thetemperature of the charging interface is determined through temperaturemeasuring component A arranged in Interface A.

Therefore, the charging cable can measure the temperature of Interface Athrough temperature measuring component A.

Example 1

In example 1, the process of determining the temperature of the charginginterface can be specified as: temperature of at least one contact sheetarranged in Interface A can be measured through at least one temperaturemeasuring component A; and the temperature of the charging interface canbe determined according to the temperature of the at least one contactsheet. The at least one temperature measuring component A corresponds tothe at least one contact sheet separately; and the contact sheet is usedto transfer charging current.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configurationrelationship between temperature measuring components and an electronicinterface. As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of metal contact sheets canbe arranged in Interface A (for example, in the tab of Interface A).Although not shown in the figure, similarly, a plurality of metalcontact sheets can be arranged in Interface B (for example, in the tabof Interface B). Typically, a plurality of metal contact sheets inInterface A correspond to a plurality of metal contact sheets inInterface B separately, for example, corresponding in position. WhenInterface A is connected with Interface B, each contact sheet inInterface A and a corresponding contact sheet in Interface B willcontact with each other; thus electrical connection between the poweradapter and the charging cable can be achieved.

The contact sheet is a thermal source. Temperature sensor to be used astemperature measuring component A can be chosen according toconfiguration space and the like of Interface A, or, according toconfiguration space of a battery in the electronic equipment and thelike. For example, temperature measuring component A can be athermistor.

As illustrated above, there can be one or more temperature measuringcomponent A in Interface A. In order to ensure the accuracy ofmeasurement, one temperature measuring component A corresponds to onecontact sheet only; in other words, one temperature measuring componentA is configured to measure temperature of one contact sheet only. As oneexample, there are at least two temperature measuring components, whichcorrespond to at least two contact sheets in Interface A separately.

Specifically, according to the implementation of the present disclosure,the number of temperature measuring component A can be determinedaccording to the number of contact sheets in Interface A, for example,these two numbers can be equal. Therefore, each temperature measuringcomponent can measure temperature of a corresponding contact sheetthereof respectively, whereby temperatures of all contact sheets inInterface A can be obtained.

For example, as shown in FIG. 2, there are two contact sheets fortransmitting current in Interface A, that is, contact sheet A1 andcontact sheet A2. Two temperature measuring components, that is,temperature measuring component A1 and temperature measuring componentA2, are provided correspondingly. Temperature measuring component A1corresponds to contact sheet A1 and is configured to measure temperatureof contact sheet A1. Temperature measuring component A2 corresponds tocontact sheet A2 and is configured to measure temperature of contactsheet A2.

Configuration relationship between temperature measuring component A andthe contact sheet in Interface A will be described in detail below. Ifmore than one temperature measuring component A is provided, theconfiguration manner between each temperature measuring component and acorresponding contact sheet thereof can be the same or similar. Theconfiguration manner between temperature measuring component A1 andcontact sheet A1 as illustrated in FIG. 2 will be described below as anexample.

As one implementation, temperature measuring component A1 can belaminated to the surface of contact sheet A1. Alternatively, as shown inFIG. 2, temperature measuring component A1 and contact sheet A1 can bearranged on the same thermal conductive substrate, therefore, heat ofcontact sheet A1 can be conducted to temperature measuring component A1via the thermal conductive substrate. There is a preset intervalsbetween the two; wherein the size of interval α can be adjustedaccording to the size and configuration of Interface A; and with the aidof interval α, influence of the current flowing through contact sheet A1on temperature measuring component A1 caused by direct contact can beavoided.

As to the thermal conductive substrate, in order to improve the thermalconductivity thereof, it can be metallic; that is to say, it can be madeof metal materials such as copper foil, aluminum foil, or the like.Furthermore, the thickness of the thermal conductive substrate can beset as small as possible so as to further improve the thermalconductivity.

In addition, there can be an insulating thermal conductive layer betweentemperature measuring component A and the thermal conductive substrate;or, the insulating thermal conductive layer can be arranged between acorresponding contact sheet of temperature measuring component A and thethermal conductive substrate.

More specifically, upon charging for the electronic equipment, currentwill flow through contact sheet A1 of Interface A as illustrated in FIG.2. Thus, when adopting a metallic thermal conductive substrate, currentcan flow through the thermal conductive substrate from contact sheet A1to temperature measuring component A1. When adopting an electroniccomponent such as a thermistor or an electronic temperature sensor asthe temperature measuring component A1, current flowing through thethermal conductive substrate from contact sheet A1 may affecttemperature measuring component A1. By arranging an insulation layerbetween temperature measuring component A1 and the thermal conductivesubstrate, or, by arranging an insulation layer between the contactsheet A1 and the thermal conductive substrate, effects of externalcurrent on temperature measuring component A1 can be avoided whileconducting heat, and the safety and reliability of battery components ofthe present disclosure can be improved.

It should be understood, the material and shape of the thermalconductive substrate described above is only illustrative explanation,the present disclosure is not limited thereto; any type of thermalconductive substrate is possible as long as heat can be transmitted tothe temperature measuring component via the contact sheet. For example,the thermal conductive substrate can be a printed circuit board (PCB)having a thermal conductive layer paved on the surface thereof.

Example 2

In example 2, the process of determining the temperature of the charginginterface through the first temperature measuring component can bespecified as: the first temperature measuring component (that is,temperature measuring component A) is adopted to measure temperature ofa corresponding contact sheet in at least two time period so as toobtain at least two temperature values; the at least two temperaturevalues correspond to the at least two time period respectively; then theat least two temperature values are averaged so as to determine thetemperature of the charging interface.

Specifically, any temperature measuring component (for ease ofunderstanding, take temperature measuring component A1 as an example)can perform multiple measurements (that is, in at least two time point)on the temperature of contact sheet A1 in one period of temperaturemeasurement. Thus, multiple temperature values of contact sheet A1 atdifferent time points can be determined. The multiple temperature valuesreferred to here can be the same or different, there is no restrictionon this. Thereafter, the multiple temperature values will be averaged,such as calculating the arithmetic mean thereof; the mean value thusobtained will be deemed as the temperature of contact sheet A1.

The operations for determining the temperature of the contact sheet ofinterface A described above is for illustrative explanation only, andthe present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, only onepiece of temperature information transmitted by temperature measuringcomponent A is required to be obtained, and the unique temperature valuethus obtained will be the temperature of the contact sheet of interfaceA. Or, the maximum temperature value received among multiple temperatureinformation transmitted by temperature measuring component A will be thetemperature of the contact sheet of interface A.

Example 3

In example 3, the process of determining the temperature of the charginginterface through the first temperature measuring component can bespecified as: use at least two temperature measuring components (thatis, temperature measuring A) to obtain at least two temperature values;the at least two temperature values are averaged so as to determine thetemperature of the charging interface, wherein the at least twotemperature measuring components correspond to the at least twotemperature values respectively.

Specifically, in this example, a plurality of temperature measuringcomponent is arranged, and temperature values of contact sheets measuredby each corresponding temperature measuring component respectively canbe averaged. The mean temperature obtained will be the temperature ofthe contact sheet of the charging interface.

In the examples described above, instead of using the temperature of thecontact sheet as the temperature of Interface A directly, thetemperature of the contact sheet can be processed properly in order toobtain the temperature of Interface A. For example, a preset value canbe subtracted from the temperature of the contact sheet, and thetemperature after subtraction will be the temperature of Interface A.Any method can be used to obtain the temperature of the charginginterface based on the temperature of the contact sheet shall fall intothe scope of protection of the present disclosure.

In addition, the configuration and measurement object of temperaturemeasuring component A is illustrative explanation only, and the presentdisclosure is not limited thereto. For example, temperature measuringcomponent A can be arranged on the case of Interface A so as to measurethe temperature thereof; the temperature of the case will be thetemperature of Interface A.

Operations for Determining Temperature of Interface B

The charging interface includes Interface B, that is, an interface ofthe power adapter used for electrical connection with the chargingcable.

The process of determining the temperature of the charging interfaceincludes: first temperature indicating information is received from thepower adapter, the first temperature indicating information is used toindicate the temperature of the charging interface measured by a secondtemperature measuring component arranged in Interface B; and thetemperature of the charging interface is determined according to thefirst temperature indicating information.

As can be seen from the above description, a temperature measuringcomponent (that is, the second temperature measuring component) formeasuring temperature of Interface B is arranged in the power adapter.In order to facilitate description, in the following, the secondtemperature measuring component will be represented as temperaturemeasuring component B.

Thus, the temperature of Interface B can be measured by the poweradapter via temperature measuring component B. Thereafter, the poweradapter can transmit the first temperature indicating information usedto indicate the temperature of Interface B to the charging cable; andthen the charging cable can determine the temperature of Interface Baccording to the first temperature indicating information. Since thecharging cable and the electronic equipment can be arranged integrally,the determining operation can be understood as being performed by theelectronic equipment.

In this implementation, the configuration and measurement object oftemperature measuring component B in Interface B is similar to that oftemperature measuring component A in Interface A, detailed descriptionwill be omitted to avoid redundancy.

Operations for Determining Temperature of Interface C

The charging interface includes Interface C, that is, an interface ofthe charging cable used for electrical connection with the electronicequipment.

The process of determining the temperature of the charging cableincludes: the temperature of the charging interface is determinedthrough a first temperature measuring component arranged in Interface C.

Specifically, at least one temperature measuring component (that is, thefirst temperature measuring component, which will be expressed astemperature measuring component C in the following for ease ofdescription) is arranged in Interface C. Thus the charging cable canmeasure the temperature of Interface C through temperature measuringcomponent C.

In this implementation, the configuration and measurement object oftemperature measuring component C in Interface C is similar to that oftemperature measuring component A in Interface A, the detaileddescription will be omitted to avoid redundancy.

Operations for Determining Temperature of Interface D

The charging interface includes Interface D, that is, an interface ofthe electronic equipment used for electrical connection with thecharging cable.

The process of determining the temperature of the charging interfaceincludes: second temperature indicating information is received from theelectronic equipment, wherein the second temperature indicatinginformation is used to indicate the temperature of the charginginterface measured through a third temperature measuring componentarranged in Interface D; and the temperature of the charging interfaceis determined according to the third temperature indicating information.

As can be seen from the above description, at least one temperaturemeasuring component (that is, the third temperature measuring component)for measuring temperature of Interface D is arranged in the electronicequipment. In order to facilitate description, in the following, thethird temperature measuring component will be represented as temperaturemeasuring component D.

Thus, the temperature of Interface D can be measured via temperaturemeasuring component D by the electronic equipment. Thereafter, theelectronic equipment can transmit the second temperature indicatinginformation used to indicate the temperature of Interface D to thecharging cable; and then the charging cable can determine thetemperature of Interface D according to the second temperatureindicating information. Since the charging cable and the power adaptercan be arranged integrally, the determining operation can be understoodas being performed by the power adapter.

In this implementation, the configuration and measurement object oftemperature measuring component D in Interface D is similar to that oftemperature measuring component A in Interface A, detailed descriptionwill be omitted to avoid redundancy.

To be concluded, by means of the technical schemes described above, thecharging cable can determine the temperature of at least one interfaceamong Interface A˜Interface D at block 110, and then charging control isperformed at block 120 according to the temperature determined at block110. Charging control will be described in detail below.

Charging Control

In the following, the temperature based on which charging control isperformed will be expressed as “charging interface temperature”. Asdescribed above, it can be the temperature of any of InterfaceA˜Interface D if the temperature of one interface can be determined; or,can be the maximum temperature, the minimum temperature, or the averagetemperature of multiple temperatures corresponding to multipleinterfaces among Interface A˜Interface D if temperatures of more thanone interface can be determined.

As one example, after determining its own charging interface, forexample, the above-mentioned Interface A or Interface C, the charginginterface will transmit information indicating the temperature of thecharging interface to the electronic equipment or the power adapter.

Specifically, if the charging interface temperature is greater than orequal to a first temperature threshold, it is indicated that there aresecurity risks in charging system; the power adapter can decreasecharging current or charging voltage so as to reduce the quantity ofheat generated by the charging interface. The first temperaturethreshold can be a safe temperature threshold for fast-charging (forexample, high current charging or high voltage charging), for example,it can be arbitrary temperature in the range of 15° C.˜45° C.

Furthermore, if the charging interface temperature is greater than orequal to a second temperature threshold which is greater than the firsttemperature threshold, it is indicated that the charging system is nolonger suitable to continue working; the power adapter can cut off thecharging circuit. The second temperature threshold can be a safetemperature threshold for charging, for example, it can be 50° C.

As another implementation, the charging control process can be specifiedas: charging current transmission to the electronic equipment isforbidden if the charging interface temperature is greater than or equalto a preset temperature threshold.

Specifically, the power adapter can notify the electronic equipment todecrease the charging current or charging voltage if the charginginterface temperature is greater than or equal to the first temperaturethreshold. Or, the electronic equipment can cut off the chargingcircuit, or, cut off a power supply circuit through which a battery canperform charging for electronic components of the electronic equipmentif the charging interface temperature is greater than or equal to thesecond temperature threshold.

Specific numerical examples are given to illustrate the temperaturethresholds; the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Eachtemperature threshold can be determined according to a safe workingtemperature and/or maximum permissible temperature of various components(such as the power adapter, the charging cable, and the electronicequipment) of the charging system; or, can be determined according tovalues (for example, numerical values set according to degree oftolerance to heat) preset by the user.

In the above description, charging control according to charginginterface temperature is performed by the charging cable. The presentdisclosure is not limited thereto. In the circumstance where the poweradapter or the electronic equipment has charging control function, thecharging cable can transmit information indicating the temperature ofInterface A to the power adapter or the electronic equipment. Chargingcontrol can be performed by the power adapter or the electronicequipment according to the temperature of Interface A or Interface C.The method and process of the power adapter or the electronic equipmentis similar to that of the charging cable. Details will be omitted toavoid redundancy.

Wherein Interface A˜Interface D referred to in the present disclosurecan be achieved using existing USB interface; information transmissionamong the power adapter, the charging cable, and the electronicequipment can be performed via data transmission circuits in the USBinterface.

The charging control method according to the implementation of thepresent disclosure has been described with refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2.By means of the method, the temperature of the charging interface can bedetermined, and charging control can be performed according to thetemperature of the charging interface, whereby components can beprotected by adjusting charging current or charging voltage or evencutting off charging circuit, and safety of charging can be improved.

Embodiment 2

According to Embodiment 2 of the present disclosure, it is provided acharging control device, and FIG. 3A is a schematic structure diagramillustrating the device. As shown in FIG. 3A, a charging control device200, which is deployed in a charging cable through which a power adaptercan perform charging for an electronic equipment, includes a determiningunit 210 and a controlling unit 220. In practice, the determining unit210 can be a processor, and the controlling unit 220 can be a controllerconnected with the processor.

The determining unit 210 is configured to determine temperature of acharging interface; the controlling unit 220 is configured to controlcharging for the electronic equipment according to the temperature ofthe charging interface. Wherein the charging interface includes at leastone of the following interfaces: an interface of the power adapter usedfor electrical connection with the charging cable; an interface of thecharging cable used for electrical connection with the power adapter; aninterface of the charging cable used for electrical connection with theelectronic equipment; and an interface of the electronic equipment usedfor electrical connection with the charging cable.

Example 1

The charging interface includes the interface of the charging cable usedfor electrical connection with the power adapter or the interface of thecharging cable used for electrical connection with the electronicequipment.

As shown in FIG. 3B, the charging control device further includes atleast one first temperature measuring component 230 arranged in theinterface of the charging cable, and the determining unit 210 isconfigured to determine the temperature of the charging interfacethrough the at least one first temperature measuring component.

Furthermore, the interface of the charging cable includes at least onecontact sheet 232 used to transfer charging current. The at least onefirst temperature measuring component corresponds to the at least onecontact sheet separately and is configured to measure the temperature ofthe at least one contact sheet respectively. The determining unit 210 isfurther configured to determine the temperature of the charginginterface according to the temperature of the at least one contactsheet.

In one implementation, each first temperature measuring component and acorresponding contact sheet thereof can be arranged on the same thermalconductive substrate; and there is a preset interval between each firsttemperature measuring component and the corresponding contact sheet.Optionally, the thermal conductive substrate is metallic.

In one implementation, an insulating thermal conductive layer isarranged between the first temperature measuring component and thethermal conductive substrate; or, an insulating thermal conductive layeris arranged between a corresponding contact sheet of the firsttemperature measuring component and the thermal conductive substrate.

The charging control device further includes: a transmitting unit 240,configured to transmit information indicating the temperature of thecharging interface to the power adapter or the electronic equipment; andthe controlling unit 220 is further configured to control transmissionof the transmitting unit.

In the following Example 2 and Example 3, as shown in FIG. 3C, thecharging control device further includes a receiving unit 242.“Receiving unit” referred to in the present disclosure can be areceiver.

Example 2

The charging interface includes the interface of the power adapter usedfor electrical connection with the charging cable.

The receiving unit 242 is configured to receive first temperatureindicating information transmitted from the power adapter. The firsttemperature indicating information is used to indicate the temperatureof the charging interface measured by a second temperature measuringcomponent arranged in the interface of the power adapter used forelectrical connection with the charging cable. The determining unit 210is further configured to determine the temperature of the charginginterface according to the first temperature indicating informationreceived by the receiving unit 242.

Example 3

The charging interface includes the interface of the electronicequipment used for electrical connection with the charging cable.

The receiving unit 242 is configured to receive second temperatureindicating information transmitted from the electronic equipment, thesecond temperature indicating information is used to indicate thetemperature of the charging interface measured by a third temperaturemeasuring component arranged in the interface of the electronicequipment used for electrical connection with the charging cable. Thedetermining unit 210 is further configured to determine the temperatureof the charging interface according to the second temperature indicatinginformation received by the receiving unit 242.

The controlling unit is specifically configured to forbid chargingcurrent to be transmitted to the electronic equipment if the temperatureof the charging interface is greater than or equal to a presettemperature threshold.

In practice, the receiving unit in Example 2 and the receiving unit inExample 3 can be realized through two different components independentof each other respectively.

The charging control device 200 according to the implementation of thepresent disclosure corresponds to the implementing subject (such as thepower adapter or functional components disposed in the power adapter) ofthe charging control method described above; in addition, respectiveunit or module and/or other operation or function of the chargingcontrol device 200 can achieve corresponding process of the chargingcontrol method as shown in FIG. 1, and will not go into much detailhere.

By means of the charging control device, the temperature of the charginginterface can be determined, and charging control can be performedaccording to the temperature of the charging interface, wherebycomponents can be protected by adjusting charging current or chargingvoltage or even cutting off charging circuit, and safety of charging canbe improved.

The charging control method according to the present disclosure has beendescribed with refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, a charging cable according toan implementation of the present disclosure will be described below withrefer to FIG. 4.

Embodiment 3

According to implementation 3 of the present disclosure, it is provideda charging cable, and FIG. 4A is schematic structure diagramillustrating the charging cable. As shown in FIG. 4A, a charging cable300 includes a first interface 310, a second interface 320, and aprocessor 330.

Specifically, the first interface 310 is configured to connect to apower adapter electrically; the second interface 320 is configured toconnect to an electronic equipment electrically; the processor 330 isconfigured to determine temperature of a charging interface, and controlcharging for the electronic equipment according to the temperature ofthe charging interface. The charging interface includes at least one ofthe following interfaces: the interface of the power adapter used forelectrical connection with the charging cable; the first interface; thesecond interface; and an interface of the electronic equipment used forelectrical connection with the charging cable.

Example 1

The charging interface includes the first interface or the secondinterface.

As shown in FIG. 4B, the charging cable further includes: at least onefirst temperature measuring component 340, arranged in the firstinterface or the second interface (in this example, take the firstinterface as an example), and configured to measure the temperature ofthe charging interface.

The charging cable further includes: at least one contact sheet 342,arranged in the first interface or the second interface and configuredto transmit charging current (in this example, take the first interfaceas an example). The at least one first temperature measuring componentcorresponds to the at least one contact interface separately and isconfigured to measure temperature of the at least one contact sheetrespectively. The processor 330 is further configured to determine thetemperature of the charging interface according to the temperature ofthe at least one contact sheet.

In this example, each first temperature measuring component and acorresponding contact sheet thereof can be arranged on the same thermalconductive substrate; and there is a preset interval between each firsttemperature measuring component and the corresponding contact sheet.Optionally, the thermal conductive substrate is metallic.

Optionally, an insulating thermal conductive layer is arranged betweenthe first temperature measuring component and the thermal conductivesubstrate; or, an insulating thermal conductive layer is arrangedbetween a corresponding contact sheet of the first temperature measuringcomponent and the thermal conductive substrate.

The charging cable further includes: a transmitter 350, configured totransmit information indicating the temperature of the charginginterface to the power adapter or the electronic equipment. Theprocessor 330 is further configured to control transmission of thetransmitter.

In the following Example 2 and Example 3, as shown in FIG. 4C, thecharging cable further includes a receiver 360, which can have a director indirect bidirectional connection with the power adapter and theelectronic equipment and can receive information from the power adapterand the electronic equipment respectively according to actual needs.

Example 2

The charging interface includes the interface of the power adapter usedfor electrical connection with the charging cable.

The receiver 360 is configured to receive first temperature indicatinginformation transmitted by the power adapter. The first temperatureindicating information is used to indicate the temperature of thecharging interface measured by a second temperature measuring elementarranged in the interface of the power adapter used for electricalconnection with the charging cable. The processor 330 is furtherconfigured to control reception of the receiver and determine thetemperature of the charging interface according to the first temperatureindicating information received by the receiver 360.

Example 3

The charging interface includes the interface of the electronicequipment used for electrical connection with the charging cable.

The receiver 360 is configured to receive second temperature indicatinginformation transmitted from the electronic equipment; the secondtemperature indicating information is used to indicate the temperatureof the charging interface measured by a third temperature measuringcomponent arranged in the interface of the electronic equipment used forelectrical connection with the charging cable. The processor 330 isfurther configured to control reception of the receiver and determinethe temperature of the charging interface according to the secondtemperature indicating information received by the receiver 360.

For example, the processor 330 is configured to forbid charging currentto be transmitted to the electronic equipment if the temperature of thecharging interface is greater than or equal to a preset temperaturethreshold.

In practice, the receiver in Example 2 and the receiver in Example 3 canbe realized through two different receivers independent of each otherrespectively.

Processor 330

In the following, the processor 330 will be described in detail.

The processor 330 can be a CPU, a general-purpose processor such as amicroprocessor, Digital signal processor (DSP), Special integratedcircuit (ASIC), Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or otherprogrammable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device,discrete hardware component, or, can be any other conventional processoror decoder.

Respective process of the charging control method according to thepresent disclosure or respective operation of the logic block diagramcan be implemented or executed by a hardware processor, or by acombination of hardware and software module in a decoding processor; forexample, it can be implemented by an integrated logic circuit ofhardware or by instructions in the form of software in the processor.

The software module can be located in Read Only Memory (ROM), RandomAccess Memory (RAM), flash, programmable read-only memory orelectrically erasable programmable memory, register, or any other knownstorage medium in the art. The memory is configured to provideinstruction and data to the processor. The processor can be located inthe memory and can read information from the memory, and then on thebasis of the information, use hardware thereof to achieve the chargingcontrol method described above.

The charging cable 300 according to the implementation of the presentdisclosure can correspond to the implementing subject of the chargingcontrol method described above either; in addition, respective unit ormodule and/or other operation or function of the charging cable 300 canachieve corresponding process of the charging control method as shown inFIG. 1, and will not go into much detail here.

By means of the charging cable according to the implementation of thepresent disclosure, the temperature of the charging interface can bemeasured, and charging control can be performed based on thetemperature; whereby components can be protected through adjustingcharging current/voltage or even cutting off charging circuits if thetemperature of the charging interface is greater than a safetemperature, and the security of charging can be improved.

Term “and/or” used herein refers to relationship between related objectsand three kinds of relationships can be represented. For example, for “Aand/or B”, it can mean “A” alone, both “A” and “B”, or “B” lone.Furthermore, symbol “/” used herein generally refers to “or”relationship between two related objects.

In the implementations described above, the order of execution ofoperations or steps should be determined based on function and internallogic, and the order of description should not be construed as arestriction on the order of execution.

A person skilled in the art will understand, exemplary units oralgorithm steps described in any of the implementations can be achievedvia an electronic hardware or a combination of electronic hardware andcomputer software. Whether a hardware or software should be adopteddepends on design constraints and specific application of technicalschemes. Respective specific applications can use different methods ormanners to achieve the function described in the implementations, whichwill fall into the protection scope of the present disclosure.

Specific operations of the device, system such as the charging cable,and the unit or module can refer to corresponding description of thecharging control method according to the implementation.

Besides, the device, system, and method described herein can be achievedin other manners. Configuration of the device according to theimplementation described above is only exemplary; the division of unitsin the device is a kind of division according to logical function,therefore there can be other divisions in practice. For example,multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into anothersystem; or, some features can be ignored while some units need not to beexecuted. On the other hand, various function units can be integratedinto one processing unit; two or more than two units can be integratedinto one unit; or, each unit is physically separate.

On the other hand, units or components illustrated as separatedcomponents can be physically separate, components illustrated as unitscan be physical units, that is, they can be located in one place, or canbe dispersed in multiple network units or systems. All or a part of theunits or components illustrated above can be chosen to achieve thepurpose of the present disclosure.

In addition, “connection”, “connecting”, “coupling”, or “coupled to” canbe direct connection or communication connection via one or moreinterface; or, can be electrical or mechanical indirect connection viaone or more intermediate part.

Operations or functions of technical schemes according to theimplementations of the present disclosure, which are achieved in theform of software functional units and can be sold or used as anindependent product, can be stored in a computer readable storagemedium. According to this, all or a part of the technical schemes of thepresent disclosure can be realized in the form of software productswhich can be stored in a storage medium. The storage medium includes USBdisk, Read Only Memory (ROM), Random Access Memory (RAM), magnetic disk,CD, and any other medium that can be configured to storecomputer-readable program code or instructions. The computer-readableprogram code, when executed on a data-processing apparatus (can bepersonal computer, server, or network equipment), adapted to perform theall or a part of the methods as described in the above-mentionedimplementations.

The foregoing descriptions are merely exemplary implementations of thepresent disclosure, and should not be interpreted as any restriction.Various modifications and alterations may be made to the presentdisclosure for those skilled in the art. Any modification, equivalentsubstitution, improvement or the like made within the spirit andprinciple of the present disclosure shall fall into the protection scopeof the present disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A charging cable, comprising: at least one of: afirst interface, configured to connect to a power adapterelectronically; or a second interface, configured to connect to anelectronic equipment electronically, wherein the at least one of thefirst interface or the second interface comprises: a contact sheet; anda first temperature measuring component, configured to measuretemperature of the contact sheet, and arranged on the same thermalconductive substrate as the contact sheet; and a controller, configuredto determine temperature of a charging interface and control chargingfor the electronic equipment according to the temperature of thecharging interface, wherein the charging interface comprises at leastone of the following interfaces: an interface of the power adapter usedfor electrical connection with the charging cable, the first interface,the second interface, and an interface of the electronic equipment usedfor electrical connection with the charging cable.
 2. The charging cableof claim 1, wherein the charging interface comprises the first interfaceor the second interface; and the controller is configured to determinethe temperature of the charging interface through the first temperaturemeasuring component.
 3. The charging cable of claim 1, wherein thecontact sheet is implemented in the form of a plurality of contactsheets, and the first temperature measuring component is implemented inthe form of a plurality of temperature measuring components; theplurality of temperature measuring components correspond to theplurality of contact sheets respectively and each of the plurality oftemperature measuring components is configured to measure temperature ofa corresponding contact sheet respectively; and the controller isconfigured to determine the temperature of the charging interfaceaccording to the temperature of the plurality of contact sheets.
 4. Thecharging cable of claim 1, wherein the first temperature measuringcomponent and the contact sheet thereof are spaced at a preset interval.5. The charging cable of claim 4, further comprising an insulatingthermal conductive layer arranged between the first temperaturemeasuring component and the thermal conductive substrate; or, theinsulating thermal conductive layer is arranged between the contactsheet and the thermal conductive substrate.
 6. The charging cable ofclaim 1, wherein the charging cable further comprises a transmitter,configured to transmit information indicative of the temperature of thecharging interface to the power adapter or the electronic equipment, andwherein the controller is further configured to control transmission ofthe transmitter.
 7. The charging cable of claim 1, wherein the chargingcable further comprises a receiver, configured to receive informationtransmitted from the power adapter or the electronic equipment, andwherein the controller is further configured to control reception of thereceiver and determine the temperature of the charging interfaceaccording to the information received by the receiver, wherein theinformation is first temperature indicating information indicative ofthe temperature of the charging interface measured by a secondtemperature measuring component arranged in the interface of the poweradapter, when the charging interface comprises the interface of thepower adapter used for electrical connection with the charging cable;and the information is second temperature indicating informationindicative of the temperature of the charging interface measured by athird temperature measuring component arranged in the interface of theelectronic equipment, when the charging interface comprises theinterface of the electronic equipment used for electrical connectionwith the charging cable.
 8. The charging cable of claim 1, wherein thecontroller is further configured to forbid charging current to betransmitted to the electronic equipment when the temperature of thecharging interface is greater than or equal to a preset temperaturethreshold.
 9. A device for charging control of the charging cable ofclaim 1, comprising: a processor; and a memory, storing computerreadable programs which, when executed by the processor, are operablewith the processor to: determine, with the controller, temperature ofthe charging interface and control charging for the electronic equipmentaccording to the temperature of the charging interface.
 10. The deviceof claim 9, wherein the computer readable programs are further operablewith the processor to: measure, with the first temperature measuringcomponent, temperature of the contact sheet.
 11. The device of claim 9,wherein the contact sheet is implemented in the form of a plurality ofcontact sheets, and the first temperature measuring component isimplemented in the form of a plurality of temperature measuringcomponents; the plurality of temperature measuring components correspondto the plurality of contact sheets respectively and each of theplurality of temperature measuring components is configured to measuretemperature of a corresponding contact sheet respectively; and whereinthe computer readable programs are further operable with the processorto: determine, with the controller, the temperature of the charginginterface according to the temperature of the plurality of contactsheets.
 12. The device of claim 9, wherein the first temperaturemeasuring component and the contact sheet thereof are spaced at a presetinterval.
 13. The device of claim 12, wherein the charging cable furthercomprises an insulating thermal conductive layer arranged between thefirst temperature measuring component and the thermal conductivesubstrate; or, the insulating thermal conductive layer is arrangedbetween the contact sheet and the thermal conductive substrate.
 14. Thedevice of claim 9, wherein the charging cable further comprises atransmitter, and the computer readable programs are further operablewith the processor to: transmit, with the transmitter, informationindicative of the temperature of the charging interface to the poweradapter or the electronic equipment.
 15. The device of claim 9, whereinthe charging cable further comprises a receiver configured to receiveinformation transmitted from the power adapter or the electronicequipment, and the computer readable programs are further operable withthe processor to: control, with the controller, reception of thereceiver and determine the temperature of the charging interfaceaccording to the information received by the receiver, wherein theinformation is first temperature indicating information indicative ofthe temperature of the charging interface measured by a secondtemperature measuring component arranged in the interface of the poweradapter, when the charging interface comprises the interface of thepower adapter used for electrical connection with the charging cable;and the information is second temperature indicating informationindicative of the temperature of the charging interface measured by athird temperature measuring component arranged in the interface of theelectronic equipment, when the charging interface comprises theinterface of the electronic equipment used for electrical connectionwith the charging cable.
 16. The device of claim 9, wherein the computerreadable programs are further operable with the processor to: forbid,with the controller, charging current to be transmitted to theelectronic equipment when the temperature of the charging interface isgreater than or equal to a preset temperature threshold.